9:40 PM,
Feb. 4, 2014

Extension of a half-cent sales tax would help fund construction and improvements a Escambia County schools.

Written by

T.S. Strickland
| tsstrickland@pnj.com

The Escambia County Commission on Thursday will consider approving a referendum on the half-cent school tax, giving local preference in county purchasing policies and approving an out-of-the-sunshine meeting to consider settling a 2-year-old lawsuit against the county.

The Escambia County School Board is asking that voters renew the half-cent sales tax, first approved in 2008, for another 10 years after it sunsets in 2018. Officials have estimated that doing so would generate at least an additional $20 million annually for constructing and improving school facilities in the ...